Dir En Grey - Uroboros

Dir en grey have probably garnered a larger international audience than any of their fellow country men of the so-called j-rock revolution, much due to the very western edge their more recent efforts have been graced with.

While their visuals have always incorporated grotesque and often vile imagery it wasn’t really until 2003’s “Vulgar” when their really extreme persona came to light in the music, in which the band painted their sound with plenty of screaming and distorted guitars rather than the poppier efforts of their past. The band also changed their look accordingly, shying away from the flamboyancy into a clearly more western-influenced style.

This all culminated in last year’s ‘The Marrow Of A Bone’ which was without a doubt the band’s heaviest album to date. Focusing almost entirely on their most extreme side the album was almost physically straining to listen to in anything but short bursts and suffered from a noticable lack of depth and diversity.

With this in mind it was forgivable to have low expectations for the band’s latest release ‘Uroboros’, but it turns out the name is strikingly accurate (Ouroboros being the mythological snake which eats itself, signifying endlessness and ending up where you began) in that this could be the band’s most accomplished effort to date.

I think I can safely call this album truly eclectic, without coming across as too much of a music journalist twat. If there is one thing that has always been Grey’s primary sign it’s their ability to leap between sounds and genres almost without pausing. One second you’ll listen to what sounds like an upbeat pop-track and the next it will plunge itself into an unrelenting darkness with devilish shouting and blasting, hellish riffs before turning into a soaring ballad. While they haven’t always managed to pull this off without coming across as needlessly schizophrenic, many songs on ‘Uroboros’ are textbook examples of when it’s done right.

Before the album’s release a japanese reviewer commented on the sound as “if Thom Yorke made metal” and it’s hard not to see his point. ‘Vinushka” is a nearly ten minute long beasts which transfigures endlessly during it’s course and sets the mood for the remainder of the album. The band constantly throws you off once you feel you have a firm hold of the music and will throw you, without warning, into a new atmosphere and soundscape. In short; it never bores you.

Luckily the songwriting itself hasn’t suffered. I am inclined to say this is the most solid collection of songs the band has yet to produce. While there is a clear lack of potential superhits, we’re given excellent numbers like the soaring ‘Glass Skin’ to the bonebreaking ‘Red Soil’. A personal favourite is the slighty stoner-sounding ‘Toguro’ and the absolutely phenomenal ‘Vinushka’ which is a great example not just of the band’s diversity but also of singer Kyo’s massive range. More often than not he will use up to four or five different voices per song, making him come across as a demonic entity simontaneously possessing half a dozen different singers at once.

It’s always great when old favourite rise to the occasion and surprise you just when you began counting them out. ‘Uroboros’ is not only a stark reminder that Dir en grey are one of the most interesting metal bands in the world now, but also the band’s best work so far. It is absolutely essential listening for anybody with even the slightest shard of metal in them.

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